Theatre preview: The Birds, Dublin

Daphne du Maurier created a story about birds that turn upon humans that remains the stuff of nightmare; Alfred Hitchcock famously milked the story for every moment of suspense-filled terror in his classic movie version. Now, Conor McPherson tries his hand in a stage version that stars Sinéad Cusack and Ciarán Hinds. The play is part of this year's Dublin Theatre Festival which has a terrific lineup of international and homegrown work. Highlights from the latter include a new play from Sebastian Barry, Tales Of Ballycumber, which stars Stephen Rea and Derbhle Crotty at the Abbey, and Freefall, a new piece from the Corn Exchange. Add to that Robert Lepage's The Blue Dragon, Hotel Modern's KAMP and Force Majeure's The Age I'm In, among many others, and you have programme that is light on its feet and has both depth and breadth.